Yama Onna Kabe Onna ( 山おんな壁おんな -2007)

Starring:
Ito Misaki as Aoyagi Megumi
Fukada Kyoko as Mariya Marie
Oikawa Mitsuhiro as Okuzono Masayuki
Koike Eiko as Oyama Haruka
Tanihara Shosuke as Tamura Takehiko
Nishijima Hidetoshi as Iguchi Shohei
Kawata Hiroki as Matsubara Tetsuhito
Miura Rieko as Koroita Rika
Uehara Misa as Yoshino Kanako
Yazawa Shin as Toyokawa Misato
Nukumizu Youichi as Kazunuma Tadashi
Wakabayashi Go as Okuzono Goemon
Komoto Maki as Nagashima Masumi
Yonehara Kosuke (米原幸佑) as Morita Goro
Tokui Yuu as Harada Kenji
Suzuki Sawa as Harada Yuko
Matsuoka Kanon (松岡佳音) as Kuwata Ryoko

Guests
Washio Machiko (ep1)
Masako (雅子) as Jinguji Sayoko (ep2)
Ogura Hisahiro as Tominaga Shigeo (ep2)
Iwahashi Michiko (岩橋道子) as Tamura Miyuki (ep2,5)
Sasano Takashi as Aoyagi's father (ep2-5,7&8)
Yamanaka So (山中聡) as Uenohara (ep2,3)
Yoshimura Tamao (吉村玉緒) as Swimsuit saleswoman (ep3)
Kasahara Orito as Mariya's younger brother (ep3-5)
Hasegawa Jun as Herself (ep3)
Maro Akaji as Ijuin (ep4)
Matsumoto Jun as The pickle merchant (ep4)
Muramatsu Toshifumi as Sasaki workshop manager (ep4)
Enjoji Aya as Nankota (ep5)
Oka Mayumi as Mariya's mother (ep5)
Hida Keiko (樋田慶子) as Mariya's grandmother (ep5)
Minami Miho (南美穂) as Nana (ep5)
Megu-chan (メグちゃん) as Marie (ep5)
Suzuki Kosuke as Komiyama (ep5)
Taguchi Kazumasa (田口主将) as The custodian (ep5)
Kinoshita Hoka as Midorikawa (ep6)
Takemoto Satoko (竹本聡子) as Takoko (ep6)
Seki Keisuke as The doctor (ep6)
Suzuki Shohei (鈴木昌平) as Sleepy man on bus (ep7)
Akaza Miyoko as Aoyagi's mother (ep7)
Sato Jiro as Kazuo, Aoyagi's cousin (ep7&8)
Yatsu Isao as Doctor Oyabu (ep7)
Oshima Yoko as The angry customer (ep7)
Takasugi Ko as Kokubo (ep7)
Yamaguchi Makiya as Sawada (ep7)
Ono Haruko (小野晴子) as Makihara Masato (ep9)
Sato Kazuya as Kuzunuma Daisuke (ep9)

Megumi is a top sales person at the handbag section of a department store. Many people admire, and sometimes even envy, Megumi for her beauty and outstanding skills to sell products to customers. However, Megumi secretly suffers from a complex: she is flat-chested and was once nicknamed "kabe onna" (wall woman) by her former classmate. One day, a new sales person named Marie joins Megumi's department. Unlike Megumi, Marie is extremely busty as if she's carrying mounds (yama) on her chest. On top of her great bosoms, Marie also has her own special way of effortlessly selling the products to the customers. Though feeling a little threatened by Marie at first, Megumi soon realizes that they have more things in common than anybody else: they both take pride in their career and dedicate themselves to helping their customers. Through numerous obstacles, Megumi and Marie foster special friendships with each other. --groink

Okay, I was prepared to say this was one of the funniest, light-hearted, romantic shows on. Then I got to the last episode. That got so F'd up that I wanted to throw the computer through the window. This is a Japanese drama..it's not supposed to end up like a freakin' Korean drama....damn it to hell!

Okay, she chose the guy I hoped she would at the end but then.......well, she ended up with him but yet...didn't.

Okay, okay, okay....it was hilariously funny with the "boob" jokes. Then you had the idiot puns and physical comedy included. I won't lie that it wasn't funny because it was damn funny.

I wonder what Tanihara Shosuke looks like in everyday clothes. He's always in a business suit and dressed up to the "nines". I'd like to see him in some old, faded jeans and worn t-shirt. LOL!

I really loved this drama until the very last second when the drama failed me. They had to play dirty tricks. EVIL!

Tiger and Dragon (タイガー＆ドラゴン -2005)

Starring:
Nagase Tomoya as Yamazaki Kotora / Hayashiyatei Kotora / Tora / Toraji / Toravolta
Okada Junichi as Yanaka Ryuji / Hayashiyatei Kotatsu
Ito Misaki as Megumi
Nishida Toshiyuki as Yanaka Shoukichi / Hayashiatei Donbei / Shishou / Don-chan
Shoufukutei Tsurube as Nakatani Ken / Ken-chan (Shinjuku RyuseIkai Kumicho)
Tsukamoto Takashi as Nakatani Ginjiro / Gin-gin
Takuma Takayuki as Hyuuga Jun
Gin Pun Chou as Yanaka Sayuri
Abe Sadao as Yanaka Ryuhei / Hayashiyatei Donta
Nekoze Tsubaki as Yanaka Tsuruko
Shunputei Shota as Hayashiyatei Donkichi
Hoshino Gen as Hayashiyatei Dontsuku
Fukami Motoki as Hayashiyatei Donburi
Asari Yosuke as Murata Susumu / Hayashiyatei Udon
Aoi Yu as Risa
Kiritani Kenta as Chibi T / Takeshi-kun
Arakawa Yoshiyoshi as Awashima Yukio / "Jumptei Jump"
Omi Toshinori as Ta-chan (Soba Shop owner / Rakugo Fanatic)
Hankai Kazuaki as Hanzou (Oden Stand Owner / Rakugo Fanatic)
Matsumoto Jun as Yoshiko
Itou Shuuko (伊藤修子) as Nakatani Shizuka
Emoto Karin (江本花琳) as Yanaka Saya
Horaguchi Shinya (洞口信也) as Manabu
Hiroishi Keiichi (廣石恵一) as Kariya
Koumoto Junichi as Liu-san
Fukazawa Atsushi

Guests
Hiroshi (ヒロシ) as Death Kiyoshi (Sp&ep7)
Sugawara Daikichi (菅原大吉) as Tamotsu (Sp&10)
Oomori Nao as BOSS Kataoka (ep3)
Takada Fumio (高田文夫) as Takadatei Babahiko (ep3,7,10&11)
Morishita Aiko as Mizukoshi Koharu (ep4&11)
Furuta Arata as Maruo (ep5)
Shimizu Michiko as Marimo (ep5)
Yakushimaru Hiroko as Shiraishi Katsuko (ep6)
Kohinata Fumiyo as Yanagitei Koshin (ep7)
Takaoka Sousuke as Kaneko (ep8)
Kitamura Kazuki as Tanabe Yasuo (ep8,9,11)
Ino Manabu (猪野学) as Tetsuya (ep9)
Shoji Yusuke (少路勇介) as Yasuji (ep9)
Hashimoto Jun as Kaji Rikio (ep9-11)

The tale of Tiger & Dragon revolves around Rakugo, a traditional form of Japanese comedy that can look back on an impressive 400 year long history. Nagase portrays the Yakuza follower Toraji who goes to a Rakugo performer to collect debts, while Okada plays Ryuji a talented Rakugo player who wants to leave behind the old fashioned world of Rakugo for good. Shortly afterwards these two very different characters happen to cross paths through a girl named Megumi and that's when all the real trouble starts igniting.

Wow! This drama was so confusing. It's overly fast-paced. The first episode should have clued me in right there because it took me a couple of tries to watch this.

I'm not saying this show was bad but hard to keep up with. It would throw you into the Rakugo stories and then the "reality" stories and you would have to fend for yourself to figure out the show.

The show's actors were superb! Why I haven't fallen in love with Okada Junichi until now....I don't know. And Nagase Tomoya must love the "yakuza" characters he plays because he fits into those parts so well. LOL! And let's not forget the cute Tsukamoto Takashi. So I stuck in there with this drama because the eye candy was delectable.

I don't recommend this show for everyone even though there were some moments that were so funny. Again, its fact paced and the dialogue can be quick. So some jokes it took a while to catch on too. Some of the Rakugo was even lame...or maybe it's because the story was lost in translation. Literally. I know sometimes it's hard for translaters to do. So I'm not "beefing" on them. Just some words can't be translated to or from the Japanese language.

Well, it was entertaining in its own right, if you could get past the Rakugo, but that's hard since the show revolved around that entirely. Ahh well. To each his own. I'm posting pics of more eye candy any way................................................

Okada Junichi


Nagase Tomoya

About Love (Guan yu ai -2005)

Starring:
Bo-lin Chen - Yao (segment "Tokyo")
Mavis Fan - A-Su (segment "Taipei")
Yui Ichikawa - Yuka (segment 'Tokyo')
Misaki Ito - Michiko (segment "Tokyo")
Ryo Kase - Tecchan (segment "Taipei")
Lu Lu - Yun (segment "Shanghai") (as Xiaolu Li)
Ren Osugi - Shop owner (segment 'Tokyo')
Takashi Tsukamoto - Shuhei (segment "Shanghai")
Rui Yang - Min



Consisting of three vignettes about cross-cultural love set in three different cities (Tokyo, Taipei, and Shanghai), 'About Love' is a film made by three directors with six idols from Japan, Mainland China, and Taiwan. In each vignette, a foreigner and a resident, both in their twenties, try to transgress cultural and language barriers and explore something 'About Love'.
TOKYO
Cast: Ito Misaki, Wilson Chen Bo-lin
A Taiwanese student in Japan yearns to become a successful digital cartoonist. One day he passes by a heartbroken young graphic artist who possesses a quality that intrigues him...
TAIPEI
Cast: Kase Ryo, Mavis Fan
A newcomer from Japan in Taipei who eagerly hopes for a one-night-stand receives a call from a local girl for help. He speeds to her place only to find that his task is merely to help A-Su assmemble a bookshelf...
SHANGHAI
Cast: Tsukamoto Takashi, Li Xiaolu
A young Japanese student lives on the second floor of a general store in Shanghai. The landlady's daughter falls in love with him at first sight, but he is still filled with thoughts of his sweetheart in Japan...

I think I watched this backwards. Didn't mean to. Just didn't know which order was what. Anyway, to an extent it was probably for the best. It made the Tokyo segment more understandible but yet the other two less. I guess if I watched them now in the right order it would all make more sense. LOL!

The other two segments contained a little something that dealt with the Tokyo segment and vice-versa.

I think my favorite segment was Shanghai. It seemed more innocent BUT I was totally lost at the end. I didn't understand what happened to Yun and her building. And I wanted closure between Shuhei and Yun. It was so sweet and poignant when Shuhei discovered what "Te Quiero!" meant. They translated it as "I love you," which surprises me because the literal translation is "I want you." Either way.....it was so sad and sweet at the same time.

Tsukamoto Takashi


Wilson Chen